Posts under ‘Soccer’

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published Wednesday, July 28, 2010

And so he exits as he arrived: Defiant, cocksure, more than a little mad, and worshipped.

Calling Diego Armando Maradona a soccer god is not idle exaggeration. There is after all a Church of Maradona with a reported membership of 100,000 people. Now, however, Maradona is no longer the manager of Argentina’s national soccer team. Last Tuesday, in Buenos Aires, the Argentine Football Association voted unanimously not to renew his contract. Continue reading

Adios, Diego. Maradona out as Argentina coach. A murky business. Continue reading

Less than 4 years to the next Word Cup. In Brazil. Is Brazil ready? The BBC kickstarts the finger-wagging Anglo skepticism right here. Moving right along from skepticism about South Africa. Continue reading

Hard man Mano Menezes accepts job as new coach of Brazil. Good luck with that. Continue reading

The Irish curse on the France team continues to bedevil them. This could last for a thousand years. Continue reading

Robbie Keane and Damien Duff at Fulham. Anyone? Anyone….? Continue reading

The author prepares the revised & updated paperback edition, coming this Fall. The author also prepares the U.S. edition, coming in October, published by Rodale. Which already has one supporter – John Doyle. That’s John Doyle, Staff sports writer and Sunday editor at Foster’s Daily Democrat in Dover, New Hampshire. Mr. Doyle described the Sorry If You Think Soccer Sucks rant as “Awesome, awesome, awesome column” on Twitter. Continue reading

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Monday, July 12, 2010

That’s it then. Spain beat The Netherlands in a game that was persistently scrappy until extra-time. There were countess fouls. The main Dutch plan, facing Spanish artistry, was to kick at ankles, tug shirts, and manhandle opposing players. But Spain won – a victory of grace and technique over muscle and force. All good, really.

But that’s not the dominant story, is it? Certainly not in Canada and the United States. Soccer might have a new Word Cup champion, but some things never change. Continue reading

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Friday, July 9, 2010

A month of madness ends this weekend with the biggest television event on the planet. Yep, that World Cup thing will end, with hundreds of millions of people watching the final. Life becomes tedious for a while, until the European soccer season starts. No, wait. That’s just me. There are a few non-sports shows this weekend, but not many. CBC ends its World Cup coverage with Popsicle Soccer Day in Canada on CBC (noon). A Toronto FC game is followed by the third-place game from South Africa (Uruguay against Germany, 2:30 p.m.) and then, women’s soccer from Nova Scotia, Quebec and Alberta, including the famous Giddy Up Cup, part of the Calgary Stampede. The menu is this – the greatest show on Earth and two good things for non-sports fans. Continue reading

Very nice remarks about The World Is A Ball from a very, very nice CBC man in South Africa for The World Cup. Continue reading

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Wednesday, July 7, 2010

Last week, this was South America’s World Cup. There was rabid speculation about a final featuring Brazil and Argentina. That hope evaporated in the quarter-finals. Now we know it’s Spain playing the Netherlands. What the two much-heralded teams South American lacked is what the finalists have – a tactical master plan anchored by specific use of midfield players.

Here’s why the South Americans crashed out – it’s a tale of tactical innocence and tactical cynicism.

Argentina. While Diego Maradona became a lovable figure at the tournament, thanks to his unbridled passion and visceral support of his players, as a manager he was revealed to be tactically naïve. Continue reading

Arriba España! Great footage here of the boys on the bus on their way to beat Germany in the Euro 2008 Final. They sing, they kinda dance. That’s Spain.

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Monday, July 5

A lot of people, not just the Dutch, are hoping for a Netherlands-against-Germany World Cup Final. The Dutch want revenge for the disaster of the World Cup Final in 1974, not to mention the Second World War. In 1974 the Dutch team, widely considered the best in the world for flair and daring tactics, lost 1-2 to West Germany. In the world’s memory (it helped that it was the first TV World Cup shown in colour for many people), the Dutch were sublime, robbed of a glorious victory for entertaining soccer, and the Germans were hatefully dreary. Continue reading

In the pause between the Round of 16 and the Quarter-Finals, the truly official, FIFA-approved official World Cup 2010 song. Shakira.

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Monday, Jun. 28, 2010

Sepp Blatter, the president of FIFA, is one of the most powerful men in the world. He’s kind of like the Pope. As the Pope is to Roman Catholicism, Blatter is to soccer. He’s the boss. Unlike the Pope, though, Blatter is not believed to be infallible by everyone who follows soccer.

Mind you, there’s another connection between Blatter and the Pope. Blatter is steadfastly against the use of video technology in soccer. No video replay to determine if a player was offside. No little microchip in the ball to determine if it crossed the line. Arguing against Blatter and those who agree with him is rather like arguing about religious faith. Leave logic out of it. This argument is about intangible things. And as Blatter and others see it, the issue is about the soul of soccer. Does a “soul” exist? Not in a real, tangible way. Continue reading

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Sunday, Jun. 27, 2010

To the Plaza Famingo on College St. on Friday afternoon to see Spain play Chile. This story is the World Cup Thing in the middle of the G20 Thing, part two.

The Flamingo is a sprawling place – dining, dancing and live entertainment. Salsa lessons are offered, a sign says. That’s not traditional salsa booming out of giant speakers by the door and everywhere inside. It’s crashing guitars and the throbbing beat of Latin disco. The mood, before you even enter, in broad daylight, is feverish, lightheaded. Continue reading

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Friday, Jun. 25, 2010

This is how it is here. See, the soundtrack in The Football Factory is reggae. Strictly so. If the game isn’t on – and games can be from any number of countries, most of the year – the music is reggae. It’s the way it is. Owner’s choice. Roots reggae. Pop reggae. Obscure, hard-thumping surreal reggae of the serious drugs variety. You notice it, and then you don’t.

It’s late Thursday afternoon, a day of warmth and dappled sunshine in Toronto. A group of young Japanese women are in the Factory, finishing their pints. They’ve had a few. And they are all slight, chic figures, looking just a little absurd waving their big pint glasses with their slim wrists. They clink them together, giggling. They are a little tipsy, and happy as the day is long. Behind them, on the wall, is a giant poster they probably don’t even notice. But I do. It features Bob Marley, toying with a soccer ball, over and over, in frame after frame. And it declares Marley’s famous phrase: “Football is part of I. When I play, the world wakes up around me.” Continue reading

John Doyle
The Globe and Mail
Published on Thursday, June 24, 2010

On the cusp of the Round of 16, time to assess and nominate the great, weird, wacky and wonderful World Cup phenomena to date.

One: South Africa’s Siphiwe Tshabalala’s opening goal against Mexico. It was magic. After a tense, nervous first half, the host country burst into action and that goal, the first of this World Cup, was as sweet s sugar. A surging run, a beautifully weighted pass and the ball hitting the back of the net. I watched the opening ceremonies and opening game with bestselling South African writer Deon Meyer. He was quietly emotional for the longest time, explaining how much the World Cup meant to his country, how it had in an authentic way, brought a divided nation together. He was choked up when the TV showed Bishop Desmond Tutu dancing in the stands. Then he leapt to his feet, shouting, “Yes!” when the goal came. And it felt like the whole world, not just South Africa, was cheering. Continue reading